Research Associate in Land Systems Science

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The Role
We are excited to launch this new opportunity for a Research Associate in Land Systems Science to join us in the School of Natural and Environmental Sciences. You will join the TROPS research lab of Prof Marion Pfeifer, working with her on her new ERC project, TIF-CER, ‘From Forests to Fields to Sustainable Rural Landscapes: A Multiscale Framework for Quantifying Biodiversity and Climate Interrelationships’, running from January 2027 to December 2031.

TIF-CER seeks to understand how the structure and configuration of tree-based agricultural systems (trees in farms - TIFs) influence climate regulation, biodiversity and the delivery of ecosystem services and disservices. The project brings together ecological, environmental and social science approaches to understand these relationships from the scale of individual trees through farms and landscapes to catchments, and across contrasting agroclimatic contexts.

In this position, you will work with Marion and international research partners to quantify climate and biodiversity functions and associated ecosystem services and disservices of TIFs, with a particular focus on hydrological processes, water use, flood and drought risks, and their implications at farm and catchment scales. You will contribute to the development and application of mechanistic models, integrate field and spatial data, and work with ecological and biodiversity researchers to understand how these processes change through time.

TIF-CER is working with partners in the UK, Italy, Philippines, Tanzania, Chile and Tunisia to:

• establish an international network of field plots in TIFs and adjacent agricultural land uses and natural forests across contrasting agroclimatic zones;
• quantify services and disservices associated with TIFs and establish mechanisms underlying their delivery across spatial scales;
• analyse temporal trajectories of functions, services and disservices using co-designed scenario models of land-use and climate change; and
• develop tools for end-users using robust evidence for decision-making on tree planting in farms.

The position is full-time (1.0 FTE) and involves substantial international travel, particularly during years 1 and 2 of the project. You will contribute to the design and implementation of field campaigns and train research assistants in standardised data collection across different local contexts. You will be expected to co-supervise two PhD students and work with a diverse range of stakeholders to identify values associated with the functions that TIFs provide at different spatial scales.

Your particular focus will be on climate functions and associated services and disservices at tree, farm and catchment scales. You will work closely with another Research Associate on the project, whose focus will be on biodiversity functions and connectivity.

This is a five-year project with ambitious timelines. We are looking for a candidate who can work across disciplines and spatial scales, combine modelling with field-based research, and contribute to the development of an international research network.